‘Who Is Ede Lopez?’

A Riverhead man who East Hampton police say fooled them and the courts his first time through the local justice system is facing a felony charge of forgery.

Ede Lopez, 26, was charged in July in East Hampton Village with driving while intoxicated. Mr. Lopez, an undocumented immigrant from Honduras who did not have a valid driver’s license, cooperated with the police after his arrest, according to court records, among other things signing several documents after being asked to do so. In August he pleaded guilty as charged, and was fined $1,400 and sentenced to three years’ probation.

But county probation officers said recently that he had violated the terms of his probation, and a warrant was issued for his arrest.

When the officers located the man, they learned from his passport that he was not Ede Lopez from Honduras but Rogelio Soloman Gonzalez, 28, from Guatemala. He was brought back to East Hampton, where village police charged him on March 25 with false personation, a misdemeanor. Because he had signed “Ede Lopez” on his official paperwork, he was additionally charged with second-degree forgery, a felony.

“Why did you give us the name Ede Lopez when you were arrested for the D.W.I?” he was asked, according to the record. “I was afraid.” “Who is Ede Lopez?” “I don’t know. I made it up.”

Bail was set the next morning at $5,000. Unable to meet it, Mr. Soloman Gonzalez, whom police called “a.k.a. Ede Lopez” in the arrest report, was being detained in county jail in Yaphank as of yesterday. It was not clear whether the Immigration and Customs Enforcement department had ordered him detained for possible deportation.

There were five drunken-driving arrests in East Hampton Town last week, two of them following accidents. The driver in one accident allegedly left the scene.

A caller told police Saturday afternoon that a pickup truck had struck a tree at the corner of Cedar Street and Stephen Hand’s Path in East Hampton while making a turn, then continued south on Stephen Hand’s. An officer spotted the 1995 Ford Ranger and turned on his lights, but the truck, police said, drove on for about half a mile “at an unsafe speed,” swerving across lane lines into oncoming traffic before coming to a stop.

The driver, Paul M. Brusseler, 49, of Springs, reportedly told the officer, “I’ve been drinking, but I am not telling you how much.” Police said he failed roadside sobriety tests, then refused to take the breath test back at headquarters. He was written up for nine infractions in addition to D.W.I., including leaving the scene of an accident, speeding, unsafe lane changes, and refusal to take the breath test.

Bail was set the next morning at $1,500, which was posted by a relative.

The first of two men arraigned on Saturday morning, Franklin A. Alvarez-Quito, had also been stopped on Stephen Hand’s Path, where police said he was going 50 miles per hour in a 30 m.p.h. zone. His wife, holding a baby, was in court with another woman, listening as he told Justice Lisa Rana that he had been in East Hampton for 13 years.

The defendant was previously charged with D.W.I. in Southampton in 2006, but that charge was lowered to driving while ability impaired, according to court records.

Police said Mr. Alvarez-Quito’s breath test produced a reading of .09, just over the legal limit. As the baby began cooing, Justice Rana released Mr. Alvarez-Quito without bail, citing his community ties.

After he was freed from handcuffs, he agreed to stay on to translate for the next man, Manuel E. Jarama-Zhinin, 41, of Springs. Justice Rana proceeded slowly with the second arraignment, making sure the man before her understood what she was saying.

Mr. Jarama-Zhinin lost control of a 2004 Jeep Friday night on Three Mile Harbor Road in East Hampton. The Jeep struck a mailbox, crossed the road, and crashed into three trees near Morris Park Lane. “I had two beers. I was trying to call my wife, and crashed my car,” he reportedly told the officer who found him. Back at headquarters, his blood-alcohol level was recorded at .13.

Justice Rana told Mr. Jarama-Zhinin that in addition to the D.W.I. charge he had been cited for four violations, including using a handheld cellphone while driving.

He has been in East Hampton for 15 years, he said.

As the justice was telling him he would be released without bail, his wife and another woman came running into the courtroom. Afterward, the two men and four women gathered to talk together outside the building, finding that, like many others here, they were all from Cuenca, a mountainous state in Ecuador.

Krystal M. Lamiroult of Springs was arrested early Sunday morning. Police said she repeatedly cursed the arresting officer while saying she had been drinking wine to celebrate her 30th birthday, which was two days later, on Tuesday. Her blood-alcohol level was said to be .2, high enough to raise the drunken-driving charge to the aggravated level. Bail was set later that morning at $400, which was posted.

Jorge L. Chuchuca, 24, of Montauk was pulled over early Friday after swerving across Montauk Highway in Wainscott, police said. His blood-alcohol level was said to be .15.

His wife was in the courtroom for his arraignment. When Justice Rana set bail at $250, she had already started counting out the amount. Mr. Chuchuca was soon free to go, but will return, like the other defendants, for a future date in court.

About the Author

T.E. McMorrow began freelancing for The Star in 2009, before coming on staff, full time, at the end of 2011. He is a member of the Drama Desk in New York. His book, “Nutcracker in Harlem,” illustrated by James Ransome, is scheduled for publication in the fall of 2017 by HarperCollins children’s division.